Author's Note: Let the story begin.

Blazing Run through the Animal Kingdom

Chapter 1: Train Heist

The day is cloudless with the sun beating down relentlessly upon the dry land. Crossing through a small desert is a living hell for some; specifically the train below. Tracks lay down in a straight line heading away from the more lush lands of Equestria into foreign territory. The train in question is different than the usual steam-engine passenger carrying trains in the sense that it is built seemingly for heavy bombardment. The passenger cars have reinforced windows. They are mostly made of a type of metal instead of wood and have unicorns magically adjusting the train's functions based on the situation. Right now, they have a cool breeze blowing throughout the train to help the passengers cope with the severe heat. Other cars for cargo have the residue cool air coming from the passenger cars so there is no heat related damages to cargo. It saves on magic to not heat every single car.

The steam-engine is also different than the usual one spotted all over Equestria. They're built a different way to go faster, brake faster (in case any emergencies pop up) and can go longer using its current coal. This engine appears only on the northern areas of Equestria as it is not from Equestria but rather, the nation to the north: Great Caulk or “Caulk” for short.

The land of Seasons as many liked to call it. One side of the country, closest to Equestria is a blazing hot and in some areas, tropical. The Land of Heat. It maintains a fine summer weather year round rather than indulge in winter. A month of winter would lead to most of this side of the nation to starve or die out. In between the summer side and the other side lay a mountainous area with one clearing in the centre; alternating directly between spring and fall, it is where most of the nation's crop comes from. Multiple tunnels with multiple splits provide direct links with the northern and southern halves of the countries and if one preferred, there is always the mountain paths. To the north lay the only remaining option; the Land of Snow. It is a wintery wonderland year round and is home to most of the country's cultural history, regardless of the fact that there are three leading races of Caulk.

In charge of the Land of Heat is the Giraffes. Long-necked yellow animals coated in brown spots. This part of the country prides itself in it's historical achievements and potions. In charge of the mountainous areas and the north are canines. For the mountains, specifically a breed of dog; Papillions. Small, petite canines with butterfly wing-shaped ears, they pride themselves on, what else? Crops. Finally, the Land of Snow is run by various canines and even a few canine-like races.

The train leaving Equestria into Caulk bears many races as expected from the dream vacation style of the Land of Heat. Some were getting off in the Land of Heat; ponies, a few giraffes, a zebra or so, all coming from the edge of Equestria where many races gather. Some, such as various canines and very few ponies will continue riding. What is so special about this train ride is a passenger...

A small explosion rocked the centre cars of the train, a hole bursting in the roof from the inside. The barely used upper deck of the train had speeding winds for those who stood up high enough and the few creatures that decided to stay atop were rightfully shocked at the loud bang and bright light. A canine here, a pony there, all stared as the immediate smoke passed. A bag came up out of the hole, landing on the outside followed by several more. A total of six bags, all creatures aboard the upper deck scurrying to grab their belongings and run to one of the staircases leading to the train car insides. Out of the hole, a large, furry figure stood on it's hind legs, having no trouble keeping balance. Two more jumped out after, landing next to the one in the middle. Both stood several feet shorter than the first one.

“Hahaha, who would'a thunk that those pups would be such an easy target, haaa.” the figure said.

The smoke cleared entirely, revealing the figures to be canines, excluding the leader; the one on the right a Dalmatian, one a Blue Mural Great Dane, and the centre one being a snow-white wolf. They all wore thick uniforms; surely they should be roasting but they appeared fine. On their backs lay blades of various shapes and sizes. Over top the sheathes and their shoulders lay bags. Few scars on their bodies; they each embodied the stereotypical image of a bandit.

“Yeah, boss. He sure gave up them money's when we took out him guards.” the Dalmatian said as he crouched down and ran a claw over a bag full of legal Great Caulk tender.

The Dalmatian had an awkward stride and an incomplete way of talking. Everything about him shouted “I've damaged my brain” from the way he talked to the way he randomly made gestures seemingly without knowing.

The Great Dane snorted and spat at the ground. “I can't believe the amount of money he had. Must be some kinda famous dude.” he said as he stood tall, arms folded as he carefully scanned the area.

Plain desert and directly ahead, they would be entering a gorge in approximately 10 minutes. The rendezvous point. The Great Dane smirked as he turned to the White Wolf.

“Boss, next move?” the Great Dane asked the leader.

The White Wolf grinned widely, baring his fangs. He stared directly ahead, allowing a few dark chuckles to escape. He stood taller than the Great Dane even if he is slouching over. He has a muscular build able to put major body builders to shame.

“Blow the horn. Let the boys know we're comin' home.” he spoke with a gritty voice.

His voice sounded like he lived inside a smokestack; the sound that something is lodged in his throat never leaving. The White Wolf cackled as the Great Dane smiled. He looked down at the Dalmatian.

“Guard the hole. Don't screw that up too.” he said as he reached into his bag and pulled out a horn or rather, a large Dog Whistle.

The Dalmatian snorted and bit in the direction of the Great Dane's feet and stopped fondling the bags of money. He spun around 180 degrees and watched the hole intently, shutting out everything else. The Great Dane brought the large dog whistle to his mouth, inhaled deeply and blew into the tip emitting a loud noise that agitated the canines but not to severe levels. The Dalmatian continued to watch the hole, not noticing a faint blue aura surrounding each of the money bags as they were lifted soundlessly up and over the Dalmatian’s head, the other two having their backs turned to the scene behind them. After a few seconds, the White Wolf broke the silence.

“The boys'll be glad. We got a great catch today. Heheh.” the White Wolf turned around to look back at his... non-existent money.

His jaw dropped and the Great Dane turned his head to look at his boss only to see a shocked and angered look aimed at behind him. His eyes widened. Behind him is the “Dumatian” and...

“THE MONEY!” the White Wolf shouted out.

The Dalmatian turned his head slowly before tilting up to face his boss, a lazy look plastered onto his face. “Huuuuhn?” he said nonchalantly.

The Great Dane spun around to see the money gone and he directed his now angered gaze towards the Dalmatian.

“IMBICILE! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO GUARD THE MONEY!” the White Wolf shouted as he slapped the Dalmatian in the back of the head.

The Dalmatian shot the White Wolf a look of hurt and confusion as he rubbed the back of his head. The Great Dane grit his teeth in an attempt to not behead the fool right there, instead opting to look around the immediate area.

“Nuh uh, ya told me to guard the hole.” he said.

The White Wolf had a look of extreme shock on his face, unable to process what he just heard. He closed his eyes and let out a vicious growl through his teeth, clenching his fists as his arms shook violently. The Great Dane walked around the upper deck, examining the few benches and tables up there, checking in between the cars, looking off the sides to see if it fell. Nothing. He turned back to his boss and “partner”; boss about to tear off the Dalmatian's head but trying his hardest to not.

“Nothing boss, it's just gone...” he thought as the White Wolf's eyes shot open and looked at the Great Dane with disbelieving eyes, he looked back down at the hole he had the imbecile guard.

“CHECK THE HOLE!” the White Wolf shouted, kicking the Dalmatian in the behind, knocking him into the hole with a yelp.

The White Wolf looked over at the Great Dane who stood deep in thought. He had to count on his best man to get work done.

“Jump to the next car. There are Unicorns on this train, the bags could have been moved over there. I'll stay here and make sure the moron doesn't lose his brain while trying to search, granted he has one to begin with.” the White Wolf said as he began tearing the bolted tables and benches out of the ground with relative ease, tossing them over the edge of the train.

The Great Dane nodded and took a few steps back before running and leaping over to the next car towards the caboose. He quickly inspected the next car's upper deck before doing the same for the next one. The White Wolf examined the train; eight passenger cars, two cargo cars behind the passenger cars, a kitchen and the caboose. In front of the eight passenger cars, two more cargo cars, another kitchen followed by a medical car, the water tank, then the steam engine. There is no way anybody could escape the train and there are no Pegasi aboard the train so escape is that much harder. They will find the one who hid their well-earned money.

“'ey boss, there's nothing down here but one of them note thingies.” the Dalmatian shouted from below.

The White Wolf grit his teeth. “What. Does. It. Say. You. Tard?” the White Wolf desperately wanted to snap something in two but the only suitable choice found a note.

“Uh... I don't read no good.” the Dalmatian replied from below.

The White Wolf went to slap his paw into his face but instead, curled his paw into a fist and smashed himself in the cheek. It's always the only way to remove the anger building up and not kill himself from the sheer simplicity of his minion. He dragged his fist across his face before letting it drop, opting to let out a long sigh and looked around the area, examining as the barren desert started getting slightly more rocky. About five more minutes until they arrived at the rendezvous.

“Uh... something looks like a three but there is two sevens and it's arranged oddly...” the Dalmatian replied.

The White Wolf did nothing. “Just pass it up here.” he said, opting to not damage anything else, lest he destroy his brain cells before the day's up.

Complying, the Dalmatian crumpled the note up and tossed it up out of the hole rather than leave it in it's best read form. The White Wolf crouched down, picking up the crumpled paper. Un-crumpling it, he looked around and spotted his best man hopping back towards his car. The White Wolf stepped back to let the Great Dane continue his bunny hopping towards the front cars. The Great Dane sped by, shooting his boss a shake of the head. The White Wolf nodded and heard a bang down below, similar to a certain fool slipping. He decided to pay no attention and flattened the note between his palms and looked at it.

It's a picture of a pony's rump. The White Wolf stared at it in disbelief that he wasted his time on this miserable excuse for a reason his money was stolen. Then the paper started to glow and flash various colours, sparkling and sizzling. The White Wolf stared in surprise at the flashing paper in his paw before crumpling it and tossing it away as soon as possible. It made a few loud noises akin to a firecracker, and then a bright flash blinded the White Wolf.

“AUGH, WHAT IS THIS?” he shouted as he covered his burning eyes.

“BOSS!” he could hear his best man shout as his running became louder, closing in on the central car.

When the White Wolf opened his eyes, he had to immediately close them again as a hoof bucked him directly in the muzzle, causing a shriek of pain. Eyes clenched shut, paws rubbing his bruised muzzle and his eyes, that left his best man. It's obvious that his other “best man” got beat down below, sadly not in front of him. He shoved the thought away, trying to focus on passing the pain as he leaned back on the railing of the upper deck.

The pony in question that bucked him in the nose stand clad in a black suit covering its entire body with a belt around its waist carrying several gadgets; a basic puppyhood superhero. The pony in question is tall, a unicorn horn protruding out of the costume's head revealing a maroon, dulled horn. The unicorn stared directly at the Great Dane who drew his short blade as he bunny hopped onto the same car. The unicorn in question hopped backwards and stamped his hoof on the ground. The Great Dane didn't slow down and moved directly across the train car's upper deck. He ran and hopped to clear the hole. The sound of unicorn magic activating is heard, but it didn't come from the unicorn in front of the Great Dane. Suddenly, the Dalmatian's head shot out of the hole.

“Hey guys, what's going on up he-” he proceeded to say before getting the ready-to-land foot of the Great Dane in the face.

The Dalmatian had been knocked unconscious from the impact while the Great Dane fell forward, unable to make a proper landing. He hit the upper deck's surface with a loud thud as he dented the metal. The White Wolf growled and opened his eyes finally and glared at the unicorn in the costume. He immediately shoved himself off the railing and stepped over his best man who felt his leg getting yanked into the hole by magic. The masked unicorn in front of him crouched and pushed off with its legs as it slid forward on the ground. The unicorn placed its fore hooves on the face of the Great Dane and gave him a light slap, giving him the proper disorientation required to lose the fight of trying to not be yanked into the hole. The Great Dane slid into the hole, yelping as he swung back and banged his head against the metal. He landed down with a thunk atop the Dalmatian.

The unicorn, satisfied it shoved the dog into the hole and that he slid away in time as the White Wolf landed behind him, pushed himself off the ground with all hooves, hopping up over the hole using the momentum it gained from sliding and galloped forward towards the end of the car heading towards the steam engine. With a might leap, it cleared the railing and could hear the banging of the far heavier White Wolf running after him. The unicorn did not dare slow down, continuing its gallop to the end of the next car, slight banging being heard as it slapped its hooves against the metal... still nothing close to the severe hammering of the White Wolf's feet. It jumped over, clearing the next railing into the final passenger car before hopping earlier than last time. The masked unicorn positioned its hooves just right as it landed on the bar of the railing. It pushed itself off and did a might front flip, landing on the smoother roof of the cargo car and slid before breaking out into another short gallop to the end of the next car.

The White Wolf had reached the last passenger car and simply kicked the railing down, removing the need to hop over it. He leaped off the passenger car to the top of the cargo car only to find that he is too heavy. Landing with a mighty bang, the sound of screeching metal invaded his ears as the roof of the car gave out. The unicorn continued it's gallop across the next cargo car and hopped atop the kitchen car which has a slightly higher roof. It continued the trot to the medical car, then to the water car before stopping just at the end before the steam engine.

The White Wolf cursed many times as it crawled up the shelves back onto the damaged roof and opted to shuffle his way across. It is slower but he knew the unicorn had nowhere to run. He made it to the next cargo car, this time not ruining the roof and then to the kitchen, then medical. He stood there facing the unicorn who stared back, unable to display it's expression through the black mask it wore. The White Wolf decidedly thought that the unicorn must have a regretful expression at the realization it had been cornered. The White Wolf smirked.

“All dressed up with nowhere to go but the afterlife, boy? 'cause messing with me gets you a one-way train ticket.” the White Wolf smiled as he felt his rage build up, struggling to maintain control only able to due to the wind blowing through his fur reminding him that he's finally in control of the situation.

The unicorn in front of him stomped his hoof and instantly broke out into a gallop towards the White Wolf who let a chuckle escape as he bent his knees, drawing a blade prepared to lunge at the suicidal unicorn. The unicorn slid for a second, bending his knees into a jumping position. The White Wolf twisted his knees closing the gap that would have allowed for a slide; this is a common trick the “heroes” used. Pretended to jump, only to slide.

This hero obviously didn't enjoy living, because it truly did jump, tilting its head forward as its horn suddenly became the object of doom for the White Wolf. The White Wolf let out a surprised yelp before gritting his teeth and placing his blade in front of him, placing one hand on the edge of the blade to fully withstand the unicorn's lunge. The unicorn stretched its legs out allowing it to touch the ground and gave its strongest jump which isn't high. The horn collided with the blade where the White Wolf proceeded to push his blade from the lower point, allowing him to effectively crouch down and use his momentum to toss the unicorn over his head. The unicorn however did not fight and used his magic temporarily, a red glow appearing over his horn for the fewest seconds. A pop sound went off and then it stopped. The Wolf actually didn't notice but instead enjoyed the fact that he won. As the unicorn is on the other side of him as he twisted to ensure a proper shove, he stood up pushing with all the strength in his torso, arms and legs to launch the unicorn into the air.

The masked unicorn shot off, completely clearing the medical car and... spun in the air landing hooves first on the cargo car and began a speedy gallop back towards the passenger cars, effortlessly clearing the hole and getting back onto the passenger cars due to the White Wolf's decision. The White Wolf grit his teeth and growled

“No dumb pony gets the best of me!” he shouted as he sheathed his blade and  hopped back onto the medical car.

Another sound of unicorn magic activation and a bit of bubbling behind him, the White Wolf turned around to face the water car behind him. He noticed an odd new hole located in the tip of the car on a 45 degree angle, directly towards his face. The bubbling sped up to insane levels within a second and steam shot out of the hole, hitting the White Wolf in the face.

“AAAAUGH!” the White Wolf shouted out in pain as he covered his face.

The wind must have been playing a cruel joke because the steam exiting the car had started to blow into the White Wolf's body itself, burning his exposed arms and legs while damaging his uniform. The White Wolf staggered back in pain as he started to intensely sweat from the steam. After a few seconds, he hit a nub in the roof of the medical train car; a light for emergencies and fell back onto the undamaged cargo car roof only to fall through that too.

The masked unicorn is long gone and another thing is also obvious: there is two unicorns aboard the train fighting back. Two they forgot to knock out. The White Wolf payed no attention as he proceeded to literally start licking his wounds.

Back near the central train car where the whole fiasco started, the unicorn had started booking it at an incredible speed before slowing down upon coming up to the central car. Below, sounds of a fight rang through the open hole. The unicorn crouched and peered through the hole, seeing that the Dalmatian and the Great Dane had woken up and is currently engaging two other masked individuals: another pony whom is a pegasus as obvious from the exposed light-cream wings; a little shorter than the masked unicorn but still tall by pony standards... and a canine who stood at eye level with the masked unicorn. Both wore the same, bland black suits.

“TIYAH!” the Great Dane shouted as he ran forward, ignoring the frightened cries of the ponies, giraffes and dogs cowering in the booths of the train car.

The Great Dane had his blade drawn, crouched low as he ran in what one could call a Ninja Dash, preparing to swing his medium sized blade. The masked dog repositioned its limbs as the pegasus stepped back. The dog had taken a martial arts pose, having one arm forward with his paw in a ready position. The Great Dane had closed in fast, the Dalmatian opting to run across the top of the booths to engage the pegasus. The unicorn above only watched as its comrades prepared to defend themselves, opting to join in after they passed from below.

The Great Dane swung his blade as fast as he could only to have the dogs' closest paw swing down faster than his blade and grab the Great Danes' wrist and squeezed, causing the wannabe-ninja canine to drop his blade. The Great Dane had been forced by his momentum to stand as his legs caught up with his torso. Using this, he brought his left leg up to kick the masked dog in the side. Instead, the masked dog brought his free hand over and gripped the ankle of the Great Dane, placing his forelegs in a scissor position. The masked dog unscissored his forelegs causing the Great Dane to twist left, sticking his head above a booths headrest... this time causing the Dalmatian to trip on his head. The Dalmatian fell into a booth and ruined a table where the pegasus had dashed over and went to deliver a swift kick to the dogs face. The Dalmatian, in his awkward position what with his back legs on the headrest of the booth and his head on the ground, kicked off with his feet opting him to roll forward and use his legs to keep the distance between him and the masked pegasus.

Didn't work. The pegasus lifted off the ground ever so gracefully, doing a beautiful spiral into the air in a complete 360 degree spin. The Dalmatia only stared in wonder before receiving a hoof to the side of his face, knocking him out again. The pegasus had smirked under its mask and stepped back to let its canine partner finish up with the Great Dane.

Having been hit in the head by a hoof, the Great Dane had lost all stiffness in his body; just what the masked canine needed. The masked dog raised a back hoof and placed it onto the Great Danes' scruff and pulled down with his foot, stretching the two legs he held in his paws still of the Great Dane and slamming him into the ground. The Great Dane let out a yelp of surprise and pain as he slammed into the ground, immobilized. The masked canine let go of the Great Dane, having yanked the shoulders out of the sockets on his body. The masked unicorn hopped in.

“Well that sure was eventful... or something...” the masked unicorn said with a delicate but obviously teenage boyish voice, all while slouching over and rubbing the back of his head.

The masked canine chuckled. “You and your marathon runs, you have the missus zipping around like she can keep up with you. Kids these days...” the canine said in a rather deep but light voice. He shook his head and placed his paws on his hips while the pegasus behind giggled a quiet, cute little giggle; obviously a female.

“He~ey, we're supposed to show off. Otherwise, why else would we be wearing these darn costumes?” the masked unicorn said, holding back a chuckle of his own as he examined the Great Dane groaning about not being able to move.

“Hey, I didn't choose this.” the canine said as he looked as the passengers began to relax and stand up to examine the chaotic scene.

In his fall, the dalmatian broke the table of the booth so the ponies in it carefully stepped over the unconscious Dalmatian and the groaning Great Dane into an empty booth. The tension started to drop as it seemed the situation had been taken care of.

“I know, I know. The missus wanted it.” the unicorn said as he trotted towards his partners, stepping over the Great Dane in the process.

A banging started in the distance, muffled a bit and after a large bang every five seconds, it became less muffled. The creatures in the car peered over the tops of their booths towards the sound of the banging. The unicorn turned his head towards the door, cowering a bit. The pegasus floated to see over the booths while the masked canine kept his guard up, slapping his paws together, rubbing them in anticipation.

“It's coming from the front end of the train.” the unicorn said in a quiet voice.

“Wow. I had no idea. Thanks for the revelation.” the canine said with a snort.

The unicorn bowed his head, almost whimpering. The pegasus shook her head, waiting as a another bang rang out; this in the next car. The unicorn stumbled back. Hoof steps rang out and soon the door burst open, revealing another masked pony; this one in a blue costume with a silvery blue cape. The final detail atop the head is an azure horn protruding out of the mask.

“TO THE TOP!” the azure unicorn shouted out, activating her magic and shoving the canine and the unicorn out of the way as she galloped passed, stepping on the Great Dane.

The canine let out a grunt as he got pushed into the side of a booth. All three masked comrades watched as the azure unicorn bolted passed them, magically opening the door to the next car in her speedy gallop. The trio averted their gaze towards the door the azure unicorn bolted in from. A horrendous crash sounded as the door, the door frame and some of the wall around the door wound up being ripped out.

“GRA~AH!” the White Wolf roared as he slowed down a bit from the impact, only to fall onto all fours and break out in a run directly towards his masked enemies.

The trio flinched and immediately followed after their azure companion into the next car. The White Wolf ran, ducking his head to pick up his Great Dane minion. With little effort, he hoisted the Great Dane off the ground and onto his back, slight complaints from the Great Dane via groaning. He ignored the unconscious Dalmatian and continued his onward run after the ponies (and dog) to humiliate him this much. The masked menaces darted through the remaining cars towards the rear cargo cars, hearing a bang every few seconds behind them. The azure unicorn in front opened the door to the cargo car and slid to a halt. Her masked comrades behind slid to a halt, all very confused.

“Woah woah, WHAT'RE YOU DO~OING!?” the tall unicorn said, slamming his hooves into the ground over and over as he kept looking back, fearful of the raging wolf.

The masked canine started hyperventilating, nervous at the rampaging wolf just as much as his unicorn friend. The pegasus remained calm and looked at the car, realizing what their masked leader is doing. She flew up as the azure unicorn in front levitated a small ladder from its holder on the wall and setting it down. The pegasus opened a hatch in the ceiling and flew out, the azure unicorn following. The masked canine grabbed the male unicorn before he could object and zipped up the ladder, slamming the hatch closed. The azure unicorn in front used her magic once more and below, the ladder moved out of the way. A final bang occurred, only for the minor bangs of angry paw steps stopped. The White Wolf must be confused since the door to the next car isn't open.

The crowd on top tiptoed away towards the rear of the train, being careful not to catch their hooves or costumes on any bolts or other various tidbits sticking out of the trains' metal roof. Below, there a scream of agony broke out; recognized as the voice of the Great Dane. The hatch opened up and the masked crowd looked back at the hatch, cursing their luck mentally. The Great Dane crawled out, rubbing his rear left knee and top right shoulder.

“Dead end, my friends.” the Great Dane said, obviously trying to withhold a scream through his visible pain.

He didn't have his blade from before, opting to chose a larger blade. It pulled out with the rather loud “SHING” sound swords commonly make. He drew the large blade as slow as possible before letting it hang low to the ground, the Great Dane slouched over as if he is an extremely feral creature. The maroon masked unicorn lost all fear in his pose, stepping forward in between his comrades and the bladed offender. The masked canine stepped forward to meet the left hoof of the unicorn.

“Go check for anypony's in the caboose or, anypups.” the unicorn said.

“Argh, fine.” the canine said, shrugging his shoulders as he proceeded to dash off towards the caboose, the other pegasus and unicorn following.

The Great Dane snickered. The maroon unicorn leaned forward in curiosity, ready to engage this threat.

“RA~AH!”

The maroon unicorn along with his comrades looked up to the sound. They only realized now they had entered the gorge and atop the rocks surrounding them lay probably over 60 dog bandits, all standing and proceeding to slide down the rocky ledges to assault the train.

“Hehehe, HAHAHA~A~” the Great Dane laughed as he dashed forward to combat the maroon unicorn.

“Change of plan! Miss, you go to the caboose and check for anybody. Spry and I will guard the rest of the train.” the canine said, the pegasus nodding.

“Yes, nopony needs to assist the greatest unicorn ever in a simple task.” the azure mare said in a confident voice before trotting off towards the caboose, jumping to the next cargo car.

The pegasus, named Spry flapped her wings and took off towards the only safe entrance to the train while it still moved; the hole in the centre. The maroon unicorn bent his knees, activating some magic shuffling back a few feet while the masked canine did his best to slip by. Successfully doing so, the canine began a run on all fours after the pegasus to aide.

The Great Dane in his charge swung his larger blade, held between both paws in an upward swing at the unicorn. The unicorn jumped back, his magic still active. The Great Dane stepped forward, using the wind pushing against him and the momentum from swinging to bring the large blade over his head in yet another golf swing from the right. The unicorn darted forward rapidly closing the distance between him and the sword wielding dog. The dog never stopped his wing, opting to step back. His torso leaned as far back as possible, he allowed himself to swing forward as the blade yanked him so. The unicorn pushed his left hooves off the ground, causing him to side step the swing. He quickly retracted his back hoof and while the Great Dane lost his balance, the heavy sword plus the momentum making him lurch forward, the unicorn bucked his leg out hitting the Great Dane's left wrist causing him to completely drop the blade which slid off the top of the train car. The Great Dane instinctively gripped his pained wrist as he swung his hind legs around, spinning his whole body to face the unicorn. The unicorn half turned himself, showing his entire left side to the Great Dane. He raised his right hoof and tilted his head; a proud stance. The Great Dane grit his teeth in an angered grin.

“It's on now, my little pony.” the dog said.

Back near the centre of the train, Spry and the canine stopped just around the hole. The canine stuck his head in the hole. “Keep calm people. There is just about 60 vicious bandits looking to board and murder everypony, don't give them a reason to target you by screaming.” the canine pulled back and brushed a bit of dust off of his uniform, examining himself before looking as the bandit dogs reached a ledge.

“Wow. Way to keep the masses calm. We want them to stay quiet, not have their aorta burst, Chance. Or are you looking for a reason to have your name be eventful?” Spry said in a dull voice, hanging her head through the mass sighing.

The canine, named Chance, looked back at the pegasus, snorting. “Who asked you? Just focus on stopping the vicious bandits.” Chance said.

Said vicious bandits, after finishing their slide, ran on all fours across the ledge into a quick run before hoping off the ledge on an angle towards the moving train.

“Here they come...” Spry said, spreading her wings out.

Chance grit his teeth beneath his mask and quickly ran to where the first wave of bandits would be landing aboard the car behind the one Chance stood on. He hopped the railing and landed on the upper deck, prepping himself into what he managed to convince others is a fighting stance. Three bandits landed directly on the deck, while three from the left hit the side, gripping the railing. Chance looked for a second before taking one step to the railing, bringing up his right foot and stomping it on the railing. The railing itself vibrated; that and the weight of the three dogs made the top bar snap off, the bandits yelping as they hit the ground with a thud.

“Well that was unbelievably simple.” Chance said in a completely limber, Discord-may-care stance.

The three bandits still on gripped their blades in their paws, licking their lips and moved as fast as they could towards the smaller pup who still payed no large attention. The first bandit raised his sword up high which Chance could only snort at. Chance quickly crouched and lurched forward, shooting his right paw up to grip the raised arm preventing a swing. He shot his free paw forward and slapped his claws into the side of the bandits head who yelped from the quick jolt of pain. Chance yanked his hind legs off the ground and swung them around the bandits waist, body wrapping around the bandit. Chance's hind legs bucked the other bandit knocking him back and off of the train car. The bandit Chance had wrapped himself around had been thrown off balance due to Chance's manoeuvre and stumbled to the side. Chance pushed off, the final straw before the bandit tumbled off the top of the train car as well. The final bandit crouched, flinching at the simple display of taking out his fellow bandits. Chance, on the ground, pushed off with all fours in a low leap forward. He pushed his paws off the ground and he tackled the bandit in the abdomen. He wrapped his forelegs around the bandits waist and allowed his hind legs to propel him to a standing position. Whilst standing up, Chance leaned his torso forward and unwrapped his forelegs from the bandit's body, launching the bandit off the other side of the train car... directly into two oncoming bandits. Having taken out three birds with one stone, Chance spun his head around as there are no more oncoming bandits from this side. Four from the opposite side were flying through the air, prepped to land on the current car.

“This isn't really a fight, now is it?” Chance said as he stood up, sighing as he scratched the back of his head, lightly at first. “Don't tell me I got fleas from that...” Chance said, clear disappointment in his voice.

Further ahead on the train, Spry  found herself pitted against seven bandits total, all who slowly stepped towards Spry. Spry stood, not intimidated by the smelly beasts.

“Kekeke, little pony, why don't you just let us do our job? We won't hurt you... much.” one of the bandits joked.

“Uncouth miserable piles of monkey dung, why don't you hop off the train before I lay down a severe round of stomping your sorry faces so hard this train will forever have your imprints on the deck?” Spry shot back, anger building up rapidly in her voice.

Several bandits leaned back, one in the front chuckling. “Ha, try it pony. We just want the money, we don't need any trouble.” the bandit said, edging closer.

Spry under the mask is fuming and let out a growl. She had enough of the flea-coated bandits and quickly launched herself into the air in a light jump and at the pinnacle of her jump, just directly above the centre bandit, flapped her wings in an angle launching her down. She brought her fore hooves down and slammed them against the back of the bandits' head and consecutively, slamming his face into the metal ground. He stepped off, the six bandits behind whimpering as they got as far back as possible on the train. Spry kicked the now unconscious bandit in the side of the head, moving it out of the way so it could be visible; there is now the imprint of the filthy bandit in the metal. Spry tilted her head up, facing the bandits who now stared on in fear.

“Get hopping.” Spry said.

That happened to be all the consent they needed to live; the bandits proceeded to hop off the train and landed on the rough ground in a fit of rolls. Spry sighed, wondering how so many rough and tough dirty “bandits” feared a simple mare. She looked around, noticing that there are no more bandits trying to jump on the front but instead the back, where their bosses' number one minion had been combating the male unicorn and where most of the other bandits are located. Spry shrugged and stood her ground at the central car.

Meanwhile, Chance had started defending himself against a barrage of bandits, each meeting their untimely dooms... or the closest thing: pain. One attempted to lunge at Chance, Chance retorted by lunging forward with his arm and gripping the bandits wrist and hitting the bandit square in the bottom of the jaw before being thrown off. Another attempted a jumping strike... a hit to the family jewels and a shove, thrown off. Three attempted to gang up; same stunt as with the first three. It just kept repeating over and over and over and over.

“Change the record please for thy name is Pain-giver.” Chance said in a confident fit of holding back laughter.

The bandits that landed next got the clue that there is no way that taking on Spry or Chance will not give them any benefits and opted to turn around to hopefully assist their bosses' best man. Nope, because the maroon unicorn had effectively disarmed him too.

The Great Dane drew his final blade; the short blade. “Hehe, I'm at my best with a small blade.” the Great Dane said, taking his usual tall stance while being careful not to slide off the top of the car.

The maroon unicorn attempted to scratch his face only remember the mask is in the way. He grunted and still had his unicorn magic active. The bandit still has no clue what exactly it is the unicorn is doing but payed no large attention. He dashed forward, faster than his previous dashes and held his shorter blade closer than before; it is practically a kunai. A wannabe-ninja to the fullest extent... but the difference between wannabe-ninja and this guy is... blade. He is completely different from before, instead giving the unicorn no openings or chances to defend. The unicorn stepped back as the Great Dane gave a very quick swipe from the left, almost cutting the unicorn's muzzle. He didn't slow down and brought the knife back in a vertical swing. The unicorn stepped to the right, barely avoiding the swipe only to realize too late the Great Dane brought his left leg up and slammed it into the side of the unicorn's head. The unicorn stumbled diagonally, almost falling of the side but coming out of his disorientation just in time. He ducked as the Great Dane took another step forward and barely missed his horn. The unicorn still never lost focus. He took advantage that the Great Dane had that one second delay after swinging and galloped towards the other end of the train car. He stopped, sliding just perfectly so he spun facing his enemy again. The Great Dane turned around and held the knife forward, standing in a perfectly contempt stance.

“Surprised? Good. I'm not the number one bandit henchman for a reason.” the Great Dane chuckled as he said so.

The unicorn made no noise or movements aside from the few vibrations the train made from the tracks. The gorge itself is coming up to an end just up ahead. The unicorn noticed this and payed little attention after that. His horn's glow instantly grew brighter and disappeared after a second.

“All done.” the unicorn said.

The Great Dane cocked his head to the side, brow raised before letting a smug chuckle escape.

“Ha, given up? Of course.” the Great Dane said before crouching down and dashed forward.

Except he didn't. His clothes felt instantly more loose and tighter in some areas, completely different than before. His pant legs are all baggy, his jacket being tighter. He can't run properly and the fact his jacket is tighter completely prevents him from bending or turning his forelegs. He had effectively been immobilized. He fell forward, landing face first on the ground. His short blade fell out of his fingers as the grip loosened temporarily during the impact with the ground.

“My magical skill is best in manipulating very, VERY small objects. Last time I checked, thread is small. I loosened and ripped some thread on your pants, and tightened and reduced the amount of valence stitching on your jacket.” the unicorn stepped forward and kicked the small blade off the train, the Great Dane growling and snarling as he realized he lost. “You just lost to Chibi Masato, the artistic pony. Surely you can appreciate my mad skill?” the unicorn named Chibi said as he knelt down to stare directly at the bandit's face.

The other bandits proceeded to jump off the train at the sight of not only their comrades getting battered and beaten by the other two, but one of their strongest men getting taken out in such a simple fashion. Now there are only three of the bandits still on the train. The Great Dane, the unconscious Dalmatian, and the White Wolf. Chance, Chibi and Spry looked at each other and brought up their hooves and paw and outlined a simple smile on their faces. They looked over at the caboose, wondering where their azure leader is.

Meanwhile, in the caboose...

“You must leave! Climb up the ladder through the hatch and go to the top. My assistants shall take care of you.” the azure unicorn said in a confident tone.

In the caboose stand three canines; all Papillion breed dogs. They wore elegant clothing which isn't your typical summer uniform; they looked almost as if you could attach winter clothing on. The two grown Papillions were obviously parents, as the third Papillion is a small puppy.

“The bandits have been apprehended, yes?” the adult male asked.

The masked mare shook her head. “No, their leader is coming in this general direction. You must escape to the other cars. My assistants shall protect you from all harm.” she pointed to the ladder of the caboose.

The Papillions nodded and the mother picked up the puppy and placed him in a small seat on her back and they walked over to the ladder, climbing up and out of the hatch. They looked around seeing the gorge where the bandits had been fought back, having long since left it. They crawled onto the roof and carefully made their way to the car Chibi is standing on. Chibi heard the paw steps from behind and looked at the seemingly wealthy dogs.

“Follow me.” he said as he activated his magic, tightening the pants on the Great Dane completely neutralizing any more potential for threatening gestures. Chibi walked across the next cargo car, the two dogs in tow. Chibi walked up to Chance who then walked back to the centre car where Spry stands waiting.

“Take these two inside, Spry. We'll make go make sure skintight over there won't fall off before going to meet up with the missus.” Chance said, allowing the three Papillions to go to the hole.

Spry sighed. “I gotcha.” she said, flying over to the father and picking up the small dog and slowly placing him inside the train car.

Chance nodded and waited for Spry to fly out again before turning and jumping over the train car's railing following Chibi who already started leaping over railings; he is at the car where “skintight” is lying already. Spry carefully lifted the mother and her pup down into the car and wiped a brow. She decided to stay and make sure the people are safe until they arrive at the next station in Great Caulk. She looked around, everything is normal except... the Dalmatian isn't there. She looked around down the train through the broken doors, not seeing the Dalmatian anywhere. She ushered the Papillions to sit down in one of the booths still open. Several Giraffes and Dogs gasped at the sight of the Papillions, but Spry payed it no mind. The Dalmatian is the only thin on her mind right now.

Spry decided she has enough of this costume and reached a hoof behind her head and pulled off the mask, revealing a rather picture perfect face and short, peach coloured hair. She turned her head and bit her costume and tore it off, revealing her cream coloured body. On her flank lay a Cutie Mark depicting a Pegasus Pony doing a graceful spin through a hoop. She examined the rest of the cabin before trotting to the rear end of the train. She passed into the next train car to see that most train goers are talking, some skeptical, some trying to shut out the chaos going on. Spry trotted through the car, carefully examining the whole car. She passed it, trotting into the next car. Next is the cargo car, no signs of anything alive in it. Nothing. . .

Above, Chance and Chibi looked down at the Great Dane, poking him every few seconds. They had actually taken off their costumes and used it to tie the Great Dane to the railing of the passenger car regardless of the fact that they aren't on the passenger car.

Chibi Masato has a maroon coat with shaggy, wild brown mane. His mane is actually shaggy and wild enough that it catches on his horn, effectively hiding his horn... instead, a large antenna of hair sticking up is visible. On his body lay a white windbreaker and his flank a Cutie Mark with an ink pen overlapping a blank sheet of paper.

Chance is a furry white Papillion with brown spots all over his body and a symmetrical face, two brown spots ranging from his eyes to his ears providing a mask-like brown spot save for the one white stripe going from his muzzle to the back of his head.

Both figures looked over at the caboose, praying that their leader isn't in any trouble. She should have come up to the roof by now...

The azure mare breathed a sigh of relief; this wealthy family has been evacuated to safety (or the best thing available on a train full of bandits) and now, she only has to worry about one thing.

“Unlike your acrobatic little friend, you really do have nowhere to go, heh.” the White Wolf said before breaking down the door to the caboose.

The azure mare turned around and sighed at the display of property damage.

“Listen, normally somepony such as myself doesn't associate myself with such awkward ponies let alone dogs but those performers are a band of assistants, belonging to the greatest equine to ever live. What makes a sorry mutt such as yourself think that the most powerful unicorn ever cannot escape out of this situation, let alone take you down by her lonesome?” the azure mare retorted, standing her ground with truly no fear.

The White Wolf chuckled and grit his teeth. “I'm going to make you into a stuffed doll, my little pony.” the White Wolf said before breaking out in a charge, staying low and keeping his arms wide in what appeared to be a Rugby tackle.

The azure mare snorted and her horn lit up with a blue glow; a flash bang flared through the caboose, blinding the White Wolf who cursed at the fact he had been hit by the exact same thing twice (or two variations). The azure mare stomped a hoof on the ground with a mighty “Hmph!” before galloping around the large wolf, up the ladder and to the top of the train. Reaching the top, the azure mare spotted her assistants... without costumes.

“You removed your costume!? What did-” the azure mare tried to say before a large paw grabbed her left hind leg.

The White Wolf had crawled up the ladder, having recovered faster from the flash than earlier and as he rose, he held the azure mare in the air. Chance and Chiba let out surprised gasps before quickly running towards their leader. Yet another bang happened but this time, only a dent appeared in the roof creating a mound. Chibi and Chance stared for a second before Chance changed his attention back to the White Wolf who is ascending onto the roofs of the train cars, holding their leader by the ankle. Chibi continued to stare before a small explosion was heard, this time the metal completely giving way and the Dalmatian from earlier hopped out. He looked forward at Chibi and Chance just to see Chance break into a run towards the White Wolf, effectively causing enough pain to the azure unicorn by squeezing to prevent the unicorn from being able to focus on casting a spell. Chibi decided to chase after the Dalmatian, only to see the Dalmatian run off.

“Huhn?” Chibi put on a look of confusion at the apparent fleeing of the Dalmatian onto the next cargo car... “Directly where his partner is!?” Chibi said out loud before cursing mentally and giving chase.

He still didn't make it in time as the Dalmatian drew his shortest blade and quickly cut off the clothing and costumes restraining the Great Dane. The Great Dane immediately shot to his feet and the Dalmatian stopped, spinning around to face the unicorn. One on one, sure but this is a different case. Now he can't use his restraining method; one reason is due to the lack of clothing on the more dangerous threat and two is because the dual assault prevents proper focus. From the same hole created by the Dalmatian, Spry flew out and landed on the roof of the car.

“Fufufu, guess what?” the Dalmatian said towards the Great Dane.

The Great Dane retained his angered look, opting to ignore the question. The Dalmatian waited for a second before his face contorted into a frown.

“I found the bosses money.” the Dalmatian said dully.

The Great Dane's face changed into one of shock as he looked over to his partner. Spry and Chibi stared on before cluing into the fact that they aren't doing anything with the crooks right in front of them. The two ponies spat at the ground simultaneously before charging forward in a gallop to face the bandits head on.

Spry leaped into the air, once more performing a graceful jump with a twirl targeting the space behind the bandits only to have the Dalmatian reach up lazily without looking and grabbing both of her hind legs. The pegasus stopped in midair, front half swinging down and slapping into the back of the Dalmatian who promptly swung the pony forward as if she were a club directly at Chibi. The Dalmatian let go of Spry and began a slow jog towards his enemies. Chibi skidded to a halt, choosing to take the hit to save his comrade from slamming into the hard metal. He turned his head as to not gouge the pegasus who slapped into the side of his head, knocking him back a few steps. The Great Dane charged forward, taking advantage of the disorientation and grabbed the unicorn stallion by the horn and yanking him backwards, dragging Chibi back by his magic tool.

“Woah woah HEY THERE, STOP!” Chibi shouted in pain as he reached up with his fore hooves to grab at the dog's paw.

He kept loosing focus as his rump dragged on the rough metal roof, hitting every bolt, ridge and other thing. The Great Dane continued his run. Upon reaching the end of the cargo car, he pulled up, tossing the unicorn into the air towards Chance. Chance heard the commotion behind him and turned only to have Chibi slam into his torso, knocking them both down as they slid across the cargo car's rough roof just next to the White Wolf who still squeezed the azure mare by her ankle, extracting screams of agony from the pained unicorn. The White Wolf pulled his arm back quickly and yanked it forward, tossing the azure mare forward towards the gap between the two cargo cars.

Back near the passenger cars, the Dalmatian, after slamming the pegasus into her friend jogged up and yanked her up by her wing, bringing a scream of pain from her as well. He instead took a step over the pegasus and then pulled her over his shoulder towards the next car, only to hit the Great Dane in the back. Spry used the impact to open her wings, twisting them a certain way to land hooves down on the cargo car just after the azure mare slid beneath her hooves. The Great Dane, having been knocked over extended his forelegs out, placing them on the next car to prevent falling in the gap. The azure mare only slid into his arms, managing to get a scream of pain from one of the bandits this time. His forelegs buckled and the Great Dane yelped as he fell into the gap, falling into the little doorway between train cars.

Spry spun around and extended a hoof to the fallen azure mare who accepted it with no questions and had been promptly pulled to her feet. Both mares stared at the fallen boys; both whom the White Wolf spared no time trying to harm. The White Wolf brought a hind leg up and stomped his paw down on Chance's torso, knocking the wind out of the pup and violently pushing off, rolling and hurting the dog more. Chibi rolled to the side and pushed off in an attempt to move only for the White Wolf to lurch forward and stab an arm under the unicorn's torso between his legs and yank up, tossing Chibi over towards the two mares who both grit their teeth and lunged forward, deciding to wait for the fool of a pup behind them to catch up before paying any real attention...

That happened to be a bad mistake. The Dalmatian showing a surprising level of competence had caught up to the mares and leaped into the air, landing on Spry before she could take off catching both mares by surprise. He extended an arm out and clothes lined the azure mare, knocking her over next to Chiba and Chance. Spry merely buckled under the intense weight and had been forced forward by the momentum of the Dalmatian, falling forward onto the rough cargo car's roof. All of the show stoppers were grounded and in pain. The Dalmatian stood up, helping up his Great Dane friend as his paw grabbed onto the roof. When up, the Great Dane elbowed the Dalmatian in the gut hard. The Dalmatian quickly recovered and all three bandits stared down at the grounded performers.

“You found my money, huhn? I'm legitimately surprised. You earn a biscuit when we get back.” the White Wolf said to the Great Dane.

The Dalmatian's eyes widened and he let out a bark, panting like a dumb, mindless little puppy rather than the dimwitted bandit he is. He made that display of odd emotion short and glared down at the performers with a devious grin.

“You ponies... and dog, have put us through a lot. You hurt my men and left them beaten, broken and scared in that gorge. Now, we're gonna leave you beaten, broken and dead in the desert.” the White Wolf said, stepping forward.

Chance stumbled to his feet and felt a hard kick to his chest, knocking him back onto Chibi destroying Chibi's effort at getting up. Chance held his gut and Chibi had been trying his hardest to not slide off the edge. He looked over at the azure mare and Spry, nodding.

“I believe I owe you unicorns fer them blinding spells and the nose.” the White Wolf said, extending his claws.

All three bandits began to growl and crouched low to prepare to pounce on their pray. The azure mare would have none of that. She immediately pushed herself to her feet and Spry flapped her wings hard, taking off. She tilted to the side and lifted the azure mare up into the air. All three bandits watched as the two ponies ascended. The azure mare's horn lit up and the White Wolf immediately averted his gaze down to the ground... only to meet a buck from Chibi yet again. He immediately shot his head back from the pain only to see the bright firework the azure mare created blinding him to boot. Both of the dogs had stupidly stared and were blinded all the same. As the White Wolf staggered back, Chance, having recovered from the hits ran forward and pushed the heavy wolf back knocking him back into the hatch on the caboose's roof.

Spry dropped the azure unicorn onto the deck where she then landed behind the blinded dogs. Chibi ran between the two dogs and skidded to a halt, balancing himself on his forelegs and bucked the two dogs in the back, causing them to stumble forward half of the cargo car's length. Spry flapped her wings hard, taking off and gave the two dogs yet another shove to the very edge of the car where they promptly stopped rubbing their eyes and flapped their arms in an attempt to not fall. Chance gave them the final shove and the two dogs fell down the hole simultaneously. The azure mare ran to the edge and activated her magic, activating the emergency brake on the caboose and then Chibi stepped forward, activating his magic too. Down below, Chibi pulled out several small pins with his magic and the azure mare did the final step: undoing the link between the caboose and the cargo car. The train sped on as the caboose car carrying the three bandits slowed down.

The White Wolf stepped out of the broken door, the Great Dane and Dalmatian following; both rubbing their heads. They glared at the ponies (and dog) and growled.

“Who are you!?” the White Wolf shouted out in anger towards the group that foiled their plan.

The azure mare reached around and pulled off the mask covering her head and in turn, the costume she wore. A flowing lavender cape, a silvery blue mane and a smug grin. An azure coat like her costume and on her flank is a Cutie Mark with a magic wand.

“The greatest equine who has ever lived! Magic unrivalled by everypony, thousands clamouring to know me, for I am the Great and All-Powerful Trixie!” the leading lady said, taking a tall, proud stance.

The White Wolf growled, watching as Trixie, her gang and the train turn into a small dot as the caboose slowed to a stop.

Trixie had gotten the best of him.

Author's Notes: So how is it? Anybody feel like commenting or reviewing? If not, ehn.

This story shares canon with the Apple Spectrum. Please check that out too.